


i will not allow you to fall from grace (instead, i will be the sinner)

by emissary



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Angst, Blood, Gen, Murder
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-26
Updated: 2013-08-26
Packaged: 2017-12-24 17:14:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,185
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/942492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emissary/pseuds/emissary
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After a failed attempt on Scott's life, Peter is captured by Scott's pack and Scott is faced with the burden of potentially having to carry out a death sentence.</p>
<p>Stiles takes away that burden.</p>
            </blockquote>





	i will not allow you to fall from grace (instead, i will be the sinner)

He’s still holding the knife, soaked in the blood of Peter Hale, when Scott lays eyes on him.

 

Scott stops in his tracks. Stiles is kneeling in a pool of blood, unmoving.  His back is to Scott, but Scott can hear his pulse racing. Surrounding Stiles is the circle of mountain ash that had originally been placed around Peter on Scott’s orders. In the middle of the circle hangs Peter, his wrists still encircled in shackles hanging from the ceiling, and gutted body still wrapped in wolfsbane.

 

Peter’s attempt on Scott’s life had been a close call, but his pack had saved him. They had even captured Peter and carefully restrained him here. Scott had the mountain ash placed around Peter as an extra precaution to keep him there, but it also had a secondary purpose. As much as it was there as another way to keep Peter in, it was also there to keep members of his own pack from hastily killing Peter.  Scott was their Alpha, and if he wasn’t the one to uphold some sort of just process, even for somebody as despicable as Peter, nobody would.

 

“Stiles…” Stiles - squeamish around needles, sarcastic, (mostly) innocent Stiles – now kneeling, heart pounding, drenched in the blood of someone he murdered.

 

Hearing Scott say his name makes Stiles flinch. His steady hand holding the knife starts to tremble, and he finally lets go. The knife drops into the blood on the floor, and begins to turn around to face Scott.

 

“I thought the mountain ash barrier would keep my pack from getting to him until I decided what to do. I didn’t think you would…” Scott trails off when he sees Stiles’ face and all the red stains.

 

“I had to do it,” Stiles says softly, but without regret. “He tried to kill you. I couldn’t let him try again.”

 

Stiles sees Scott look at him like he is a stranger. Stiles would almost prefer Scott to think it was a spur of the moment decision – an emotional decision with the single purpose to save Scott from future harm at the hands of Peter. That was almost better than Scott knowing it was planned, a rational decision to go against Scott’s authority over the pack. That authority didn’t really extend to Stiles, but he was still Scott’s most trusted ally, friend…family, and it was still a betrayal.

 

Stiles knew that Peter would have had to die either way – it was the decision Scott would have had to make after everything that had happened. Scott would have had to sentence Peter to death, and he wouldn’t have let anyone but himself carry out that sentence, to carry that burden of executing somebody – a burden that would weigh heavily on Scott.  _It would have weighed too heavily_.

 

“We both know you would have had to kill him eventually, Scott. We couldn’t have left him tied up here forever. It would’ve been too dangerous, not only for you, but for other people,” Stiles tells him. Stiles is doing a remarkably good job keeping his composure, considering the scene around him, and that he had just gutted a man.

 

Scott stares at Stiles, shirt soaked in blood, splotches of it all over his face. His brother who murdered for him.  He pushes away the thought that part of him knew that something like this was a possibility. He knows Stiles would cross lines for him, lines that make Scott uncomfortable. Scott had Peter under control though, he wasn’t a threat to Scott anymore – why did Stiles do this?

 

“We still agreed that we would wait. If it came down to it, I would be the one to make that call. I would be the one to do it, if we had no other choice,” Scott said. Scott knows what the inevitable decision would have been – he knows the sentence he would have had to pass, and the horrible responsibility he would have had after that - the responsibility that Stiles took from him.

 

“Peter dies either way. If I did it, it would be…easier,” Stiles replies. Easier, but not easy. Stiles feels blood soaking through his jeans uncomfortably from kneeling on the ground. He becomes more aware of the nauseating, metallic smell of the blood. The smell has to be overwhelming for Scott.

 

“You killed him…so I wouldn’t have to,” Scott said, shakily, understanding. He did it to eliminate Scott’s enemy, but also because he didn’t want Scott to have to kill. Stiles thinks will be easier for him to carry this on his conscience, deal with this experience. Scott isn’t so sure.

 

Stiles stares at him. He’s now standing in the circle of mountain ash. Tears begin to fill his eyes when he considers that Scott might be disappointed in him, might never look at him the same after this.  Now that he’s on his feet, he notices that the smell of the blood is actually making him dizzy.

 

“Scott…” Stiles slowly walks toward him, passing through the mountain ash barrier. Stiles moves to touch Scott’s arm, but when he sees his own blood-soaked hand in front of him, he immediately pulls it back. He tries to find a clean spot on his shirt to wipe his hands on. He will not let Peter Hale’s blood stain Scott.

 

“Please stop looking at me like that,” Stiles pleads, wiping his hand on his shirt. He can’t get it off, and the blood is all over his shirt and jeans.

 

“Like what?” Scott asks.

 

“Kind of like you’re not sure how you should be looking at me,” Stiles replies quickly. He was expecting this, but he thinks he might need Scott more than he thought he would right now.

 

“What?” Scott asks, changing his expression to a blank one.

 

Stiles doesn’t hear him, instead distracted by wiping his hands clean. “I can’t get it off,” he says, voice shaking, breathes coming quicker now. He stops and looks at Scott desperately, unable to read Scott’s expression. He really hopes Scott is going to look at normally again soon.

 

“Do you hate me?” Stiles finally asks, voice breaking.

 

Scott sees tears start to fill Stiles eyes, and Stiles can’t meet his eyes anymore so he looks at the ground again. Scott notices him start to sway when he sees his own bloody shoeprints and begin to lose his balance.

 

Scott quickly steps toward him, catching him from falling, and pulls him into an embrace, hugging him tightly. He doesn’t care about his clothes. Stiles goes rigid at the contact, but eventually sinks into Scott’s chest, pressing his face into Scott’s shoulder and closing his eyes.

 

“Never.” Scott holds Stiles against him tightly. He glances over Stiles’ shoulder at the body of Peter, but then quickly clenches his eyes shut, pushing the image away.

 

Scott slowly pulls Stiles out of the hug and puts a hand on either side of his face, wiping blood and tears from his cheeks with his thumbs, and watching relief flood Stiles’ eyes.

 

“It’s going to be okay,” Scott tells him. “Let’s get you cleaned up.” 

**Author's Note:**

> Partly inspired by the poisonous friend trope ([here](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/PoisonousFriend) \- also the first quote is where the title is from), even though I ended up not going _that_ dark with Stiles.


End file.
